The deceased motorcyclist was identified as Malcolm Lane, 47, Hampden police Sgt. Scott Webber said early Thursday evening. An autopsy will be performed to determine if a medical condition could have been a factor, he said.

Lane died immediately after the crash, which happened at about 2:40 p.m. on Monroe Road, according to Hampden police Sgt. Chris Bailey, who is leading the investigation.

Bailey said that Lane, for a reason that has yet to be determined, crossed the center line and struck the big rig head-on.

Though police found a motorcycle helmet at the accident scene, it was not immediately clear if Lane was wearing it when the crash occurred, Bailey said. He said Lane was operating a Harley-Davidson.

The truck driver, who is employed by Gardner Construction Enterprises of Bangor, was identified as Daniel Dunfield, 59, of Bangor, Webber said Thursday evening. Dunfield was not injured.

Randy Gardner, owner of of the construction company, went to the accident scene Tuesday afternoon. He said Dunfield has 36 years of driving experience and was on his way to pick up a load of gravel when the crash occurred.

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According to Gardner, Dunfield is a seasoned driver. He had driven more than 2 million miles without an accident before encountering his first one on Tuesday.

It appeared at the scene that Dunfield, who was headed south, attempted to avoid colliding with the the motorcycle. The tractor-trailer he was driving came to a stop at the extreme outer edge of his traveling lane.

Gardner confirmed Tuesday that the fatal crash in Hampden was the second in just two weeks involving companies within his family. The first one happened on May 25 on Union Street in Bangor.

In that crash, a Glenburn school teacher died after her car, which she had just driven out of her driveway, was struck by a truck from Hopkins Landscaping, which is owned by Gardner’s son-in-law.

Tuesday afternoon’s crash occurred about two miles from the junction with Kennebec Road. Monroe Road was closed for several hours as the accident reconstruction team from the Bangor Police Department investigated the collision, Bailey said.

Webber said the road was reopened shortly before 7 p.m.

Investigators with the Maine State Police commercial vehicle division and officials from the state Department of Environmental Protection also were at the scene of the crash.

BDN reporter Nok-Noi Ricker contributed to this story.


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